Copper coil? Anyone use this?

[Kmcogar]

Mueller/ B&K UT08025 General-Purpose Utility Grade Copper Tubing Coil https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001AH5BJ2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I found this for 1/2 inch 25 foot copper tubing. It's much more expensive at home depot. I think its around $50 for 20 feet. Is there something wrong with this copper?

 

[Falcon3]

I've got that coil. The copper is crazy thin but it works. I would get a proper tubing bender and then pop the copper in the oven on warm for a few mins to get it nice and pliable. Otherwise it's great.

 

[Rotor_Head]

Mueller/ B&K UT08025 General-Purpose Utility Grade Copper Tubing Coil https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001AH5BJ2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I found this for 1/2 inch 25 foot copper tubing. It's much more expensive at home depot. I think its around $50 for 20 feet. Is there something wrong with this copper?

Could be the thickness or pureness of the copper. Defer to yours or better than my judgement to determine suitability.

 

[Kmcogar]

I bought it. We will see how it turns out. Hopefully I can make a decent wort chiller out of it

 

[Kmcogar]

I bought it. We will see how it turns out. Hopefully I can make a decent wort chiller out of it

 

[Falcon3]

Get some hobby copper wire as well to wrap around your coils and add some structure to it. Also be very careful cutting it or clamping things to the end of it. You will likely crush it. I put a 3/8 to 1/2 adapter on it and soldered a few inches of standard 1/2 tubing onto the end so I could attach my hoses.

 

[Kmcogar]

I've got that coil. The copper is crazy thin but it works. I would get a proper tubing bender and then pop the copper in the oven on warm for a few mins to get it nice and pliable. Otherwise it's great.

I got the coil and started bending it. It's definitly harder to do than I thought. I'm not sure what the thickness usually is but this is thin.

FALCON, How did you bend your coil? Did you use a spring to bend it? How long and how hot did you put the coil in the oven? It must be hard to bend it when it's that hot, right? I think I may put some sand down the tubing too. How close did you bend the coil?

 

[lowtones84]

I used a spring when I made mine for sure. Definitely took a little effort, but worth it compared to the price of a pre-made one, plus you can customize it.

 

[Kmcogar]

I wanted to do something like this guy did.

http://youtu.be/S94Lhp-bv8M

But the inside coil might be too tight for this cheap copper

 

[Reisende]

The copper you bought is UT or utility grade. It is soft, annealed and lower purity (along with lower wall thickness) than types L, K or M, and is the lowest grade copper that is "allowed" in the US. Unlike hard drawn pipe, it is sized n the OD for compression fittings. It is not rated for things like high pressure refrigerant.

That said, it is more than adequate for any of our brewing purposes. Unless you are planning to use it for something structural, you are good to go.

EDIT: As mentioned by others though, it does kink a lot easier, so go slow and watch your tight radius bends! Post pics when your done, that looks like a sweet IC design.

 

[Falcon3]

I did mine without a bender of any kind. Basically just turned the oven on Warm setting, but the bare copper in there ( take it out if the box obviously Then I left it in there maybe 10 mins just enough to get warm. It formed pretty well, but I wasn't doing anything crazy with it- just tightening the coil a bit to fit in my kettle. Mine fit perfectly with 3/8 fittings from straight pipe. When I get my final hookups on I'll upload some pics

 

[grrickar]

To keep thin walled copper tubing from kinking, it is best to wrap it around a form. I built a ribcage chiller and used a paint can. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f255/diy-interwoven-rib-cage-immersion-chiller-106415/index28.html

To bend the ends a spring style tubing bender does come in handy, and they are cheap compared to buying another copper coil to make your chiller...

 

[Kmcogar]

To keep thin walled copper tubing from kinking, it is best to wrap it around a form. I built a ribcage chiller and used a paint can. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f255/diy-interwoven-rib-cage-immersion-chiller-106415/index28.html

To bend the ends a spring style tubing bender does come in handy, and they are cheap compared to buying another copper coil to make your chiller...

I might need to change my design. That design might be better for this copper. Thanks!

 

[Kmcogar]

I tried sticking with the original design. 25 ft is definitely a little short. I wish I bought 50ft. On the other hand I only do 3 gallon batches. So, this should work just fine. I have another wort chiller that is going to sit in ice; that way I can get my water freezing before it flows through my wort chiller in the pot. Here's the pic of what I made. I had a kink and had to cut off 2 feetbecause the kink was so bad.

Anyhow, I highly recommend putting sand or salt in the copper tubing before bending it. It make the process 100 times easier with no worries of kinks.I got sand from my local beach. I had to sift it before I put it in the tubing. There was a lot of little sticks in the sand I didn't want in the pipe.It was about 1 gallon of sand(give or take) that went in the tubing. It was tough getting the sand in the pipe. I had to stretch the pipe out, go to the top of my stairs and pour the sand down the pipe with a lot of shaking. My wife was not happy about my idea to male it easier. She ended up helping though. It was more work then I thought it would be to bend some copper. But it was fun. Just part of homebrewing.

I still need to put some copper wire on it, and some ends but otherwise, you get the point.

View attachment 1425337127774.jpg

 

[Kmcogar]

Oh, I used a co2 tank for the center coil

 

[SwissHillsFerments]

Just be sure to use one of those pipe bender tools, especially if the copper is thin. It's so easy to put a kink in the pipe. It looks like a good price on tubing, and I would jump on that price! Good luck to you.

 

[maierhof]

...
Anyhow, I highly recommend putting sand or salt in the copper tubing before bending it. It make the process 100 times easier with no worries of kinks.I got sand from my local beach. I had to sift it before I put it in the tubing. There was a lot of little sticks in the sand I didn't want in the pipe.It was about 1 gallon of sand(give or take) that went in the tubing. It was tough getting the sand in the pipe. I had to stretch the pipe out, go to the top of my stairs and pour the sand down the pipe with a lot of shaking. My wife was not happy about my idea to male it easier. She ended up helping though. It was more work then I thought it would be to bend some copper. But it was fun. Just part of homebrewing.

I was going to recommend salt - which is at your store and pretty damn cheap - but sand works too. Kudos to your wife for helping you!

 

[tstanonis1]

the thin walls of that tubing will actually exchange heat better then a thicker copper...

also, when I did mine I boiled it with a vinegar and water solution before using it in my brew... the vinegar and heat helped brighten and clean the new copper. I didn't want any extra contamination in my brew...

 

[Kmcogar]

the thin walls of that tubing will actually exchange heat better then a thicker copper...

also, when I did mine I boiled it with a vinegar and water solution before using it in my brew... the vinegar and heat helped brighten and clean the new copper. I didn't want any extra contamination in my brew...

Good to know!

 

[augiedoggy]

the thin walls of that tubing will actually exchange heat better then a thicker copper...

also, when I did mine I boiled it with a vinegar and water solution before using it in my brew... the vinegar and heat helped brighten and clean the new copper. I didn't want any extra contamination in my brew...

I used to do this to until I learned that cleaning it with vinegar actually removed the oxidized protective layer which you want to help prevent the copper from dissolving and leaching into your beer....

 

[Homercidal]

A tiny amount of copper won't hurt you. The yeast consume it during fermentation. A lot of professional breweries still use (some prefer) copper boil kettles.

 

[augiedoggy]

A tiny amount of copper won't hurt you. The yeast consume it during fermentation. A lot of professional breweries still use (some prefer) copper boil kettles.

Yes very true Im usually saying the same thing, but I doubt those breweries use acids to remove the protective layer off the copper "to make it shiny" where it comes in contact with the wort (The wort itself will keep the copper clean with regular exposure without stripping the coating)... They often clean and polish the outside but not the surface that contacts the wort... Its similar to the homebrewers that scrub their aluminum pots so they are bright and clean on the inside.... This is also very bad vs just leaving the protective oxidized layer to prevent the metals from dissolving into the wort.

John Palmer wrote a good article about this but I cant seem to find it.

In a nutshell the dull penny looking copper is better to use in your wort than scrubbing and making it shiny before each use...

 

[Conan]

the thin walls of that tubing will actually exchange heat better then a thicker copper...

also, when I did mine I boiled it with a vinegar and water solution before using it in my brew... the vinegar and heat helped brighten and clean the new copper. I didn't want any extra contamination in my brew...

I'm sure it doesn't hurt to do this before the first use though, cleaning off solder flux and manufacturing oils. Plus it lets you leak test the chiller if you chill the vinegar solution with it, just for proof of concept. Kyle

 

[grrickar]

Star San soak will make a chiller shine like a new penny. I dunk mine after each use, and it looks almost as good as the day I made it